After a decade of establishment resistance, 16 judges and legal fees of £400,000 shouldered by the taxpayer, the secret correspondences of the heir to the throne intended to influence politicians have been made public.

The royal interventions
cover everything from badgers and herbal medicines through to the
under resourcing of British soldiers in Iraq. RT looks at a
snapshot of Prince Charles’ infamous ‘black spider’
letters.

Badger baiting

In 2005, and despite being a self-proclaimed lover of all things
wild, the prince strongly backed a proposed badger cull over the
course of a 17-letter exchange with then-Prime Minister Tony
Blair.

He did so on the grounds that the animals presented a
tuberculosis risk to cattle, blasting anti-cull activists in the
process.

“I, for one, cannot understand how the ‘badger lobby’ seem
not to mind at all about the slaughter of thousands of expensive
cattle,” he said, “and yet object to a managed cull of
an overpopulation of badgers – to me, this is intellectually
dishonest.”

British troops under resourced in Iraq

The heir, who is the honorary head of over 30 military units,
clandestinely wrote to Blair warning that UK troops in Iraq were
severely under resourced.

“The aim of the Ministry of Defence and the Army's Air Corps
to deploy this equipment globally is … being frustrated by the
poor performance of the existing Lynx aircraft in high
temperatures.

“Despite this, the procurement of a new aircraft to replace
the Lynx is subject to further delays and uncertainty due to
significant pressure on the Defence Budget.”

“I fear this is just one more example where our Armed Forces
are being asked to do an extremely challenging job (particularly
in Iraq) without the necessary resources.”

Herbal medicine

Charles expressed his concern to Blair over what he regarded as
excessive EU regulation of herbal medicine, writing that the
European Union Directive on Herbal Medicines was having “a
deleterious effect on the complementary medicine sector in this
country by effectively outlawing the use of certain herbal
extracts.”

He even offered to help clarify the issue, writing: “I think
we both agreed that this was using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
You rightly asked me what could be done about it and I am asking
the Chief Executive of my Foundation for Integrated Health to
provide a more detailed briefing, which I hope to be able to send
shortly so that your advisers can look at it.”

Patagonian Toothfish

While the scourge of the humble badger, Charles proved to be a
stalwart ally of more exotic specimens including the Patagonian
toothfish and the albatross.

In 2004, he wrote to Environment Secretary Elliot Morley on the
topic: “I particularly hope that the illegal fishing of the
Patagonian toothfish will be high on your list of priorities
because until that trade is stopped, there is little hope for the
poor old albatross, for which I shall continue to campaign.”

Healthcare woes

As well as his interest in alternative medicine, Charles took an
interest in the redevelopment of certain hospitals.

In 2005, he wrote to then Heath Secretary John Reid expressing
his interest in developing an old asylum in Sunderland into a
hospital.

“I hope you will forgive my persistence on this issue,” he
said, “but, despite your helpful updates, the log-jam to which I
referred in my letter of last August shows little sign of
alleviation and it saddens me greatly to think that the immense
progress and collective enthusiasm gathered 12 months ago is now
in danger of being lost.”

Fairness for farmers

In his various letters on agriculture, the Prince displays a deep
knowledge of the industry as he lobbied for fairer treatment of
farmers by supermarkets.

“There is no doubt that the dominant position of the
retailers is the single biggest issue affecting British farmers
and the food chain, and if it is not dealt with all the other
good work which has been going on risks becoming virtually
useless.”

Response to publication

Labour MP Paul Flynn called the Prince the “the lobbyist
supreme in the land,” arguing his opinion should not count
more than anyone else’s.

“They show he is putting forward a whole variety of views –
including many bad science views and others that should have no
more weight than the man down the pub,” said Flynn.

“We can see his views were given a seriousness and priority
they did not deserve.”

Former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, who was the architect of the
Freedom of Information Act under which the Guardian newspaper
originally tried to access the letters, said the courts had
overstepped their authority by releasing them.

“The heir to the throne is going to have some views,” he
said. “If you want a constitutional monarchy it is important
that those views are known but they are only known in
private.”

As the letters were revealed, a royal spokesperson said: “The
publication of private letters can only inhibit his ability to
express the concerns and suggestions which have been put to him
in the course of his travels and meetings.

“The Prince of Wales is raising issues of public concern, and
trying to find practical ways to address the issues.”

The heir’s office added that the Prince, who may one day be the
unelected monarch of the nation, “cares deeply about this
country, and tries to use his unique position to help
others.”